ECI mobilises support for Israel ahead of Peace summit in Paris – French “quick fix” undermines central principles in international law

Brussels, January 13th, 2017 – The European Coalition for Israel has sent an open letter to the members of the UN Security Council, ahead of the Middle East Peace conference in Paris this Sunday, 15th January. In the letter, which will also be presented to the conference in Paris, ECI warns the UNSC and the conference delegates not to adopt any new measures which could further undermine the stalled peace process.

“There can be no “quick fix” to the complex peace process in the Middle East just one week before the inauguration of a new President in the United States and until the new Secretary-General of the United Nations has been properly installed”, Tomas Sandell said in a statement in Brussels on Thursday.

“The extremely untimely and one-sided UNSC resolution 2334 and the inflammatory speech of outgoing US Secretary of State John Kerry on December 28 where he claimed that “Israel cannot be Jewish and democratic at the same time”, gives a clear indication of the spirit and the motives behind the Paris conference.

“Instead of rejecting the historical claims of the Jewish people to their ancestral homeland by calling some of the holiest sites in their history, such as the Western Wall, “illegal” and “occupied”, the international community should instead affirm the rights of both Jews and Arabs to live in the region”, he said.

The letter makes clear that the measures presented in Paris would clearly infringe the principle of sovereign equality of states and the fundamental right of the State of Israel to territorial integrity, inviolability and political independence, as reflected in the UN Charter and Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338. All UN Member States are obliged to recognise these rights, and they have no jurisdiction whatsoever to determine the borders of another sovereign UN Member State.

“The only route to lasting peace in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is through mutual acceptance, negotiation, and cooperation – and this should not be undermined by the Paris conference”, the letter concludes.